I don't care at all about the bubbles. I don't use iMessage at all, 0.
Convenience. Most things "just work". No need to customize or fiddle with things.
Price. Hear me out :D I used Android phones in the past (a mix of mid-ranges and flagships) and over time it ended being more expensive than using an iPhone.
Ecosystem. My mac laptops, watch, earphones, phone etc. all work together in useful ways. It sounds gimmicky but most of the time it's not.
Apple watch. There simply isn't anything that is close to it.
How everything feels cohesive and designed with the bigger picture in mind. Especially in the first party apps, you mostly know how things will behave.
Feels more "polished". I always felt like I'm using something that is designed by an engineer when using Android.
Not OP but I interpreted the comment to mean “my iPhones last longer so I replace them less often, therefore spending less over time than buying a less expensive android phone more often”
High resell value just means you can't get cheap old products. I spent about 300$ on phones in the past decade. I buy used android for ~100$ and use them for 3-5 years. Never had any issue.
Resale value maybe, but I'm finding phones are just generally lasting longer these days. My phone is coming up to 3 years old and I have no inclination to upgrade. It doesn't feel slow, all the apps still work, its running latest OS. There was a time when I was upgrading every 12 months but that just isn't the case anymore.
Overall I ended up changing a couple of Android devices within the same time frame that I’d be using a single iPhone.
I have an XS which is a ~5 years old device and will get the 17. And it’s still a very capable one.
When you say there isn't anything close to an apple watch what features are you talking about? Because I have so far not heard a convincing argument for an apple watch instead of something like Garmin.
Maybe if your main use case is as an activity tracker, you’re probably right. But for me it’s a phone extension.
I think Garmins are mainly sport watches with some smart features and the Apple watch is the opposite.
Calling someone using siri, or doing things with siri in general are features I use all the time.
Apple watch for me is a phone that I can use when cooking and taking care of a toddler at the same time without ever touching it. Garmin simply can’t do it. Alexa is not that great and the general integration is obviously not as good as Apple.